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and was not written by Leasing News nor information verified, but from the source noted. When an article is signed by the writer, it is considered a “by line.” It reflects the opinion and research of the writer.

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E.A.R. President Mark Anstett Pleads Guilty
Sentencing Set for April 30, 2015

Indicted in March, 2014 for engaging in a scheme to fraudulently obtain approximately $190 million from bank and financing companies and, eventually, causing those lenders to lose at least $100 million, Equipment Acquisition Resources (EAR) President Mark Anstett, 59, of Lake Forest, Illinois has withdrawn his plea of not guilty to Count 5 of the Indictment. He entered a plea of guilty to Count 5 of the Indictment. "Defendant informed of rights. The court accepts the plea agreement and enters judgment of guilty. Cause referred to the probation department for a presentence investigation. Sentencing set for 4/30/2015 at 9:45 a.m. Signed by the Honorable Harry D. Leinenweber."

“During the scheme, and at the direction of Sheldon Player, in or about 2007, defendant was named President and became a co-owner of Equipment Acquisition Resources, a company based in Palatine, Illinois that purported to make semiconductor wafers and refurbish machinery used to make semiconductor wafers. Defendant owned a share of EAR along with Sheldon Player's wife. Sheldon Player controlled the finances of EAR. EAR purported to purchase equipment from Machine Tools Direct, a company based in Carlisle, Pennsylvania that purchased and sold machine tools. Co-defendant George Ferguson was MTD's owner and President.

“As part of the scheme, defendant knew that EAR obtained financing from financial institutions and finance companies through fraudulent means. For example, defendant participated in obtaining financing for EAR by causing false and fraudulent invoices to be submitted to financial institutions and finance companies. The invoices reflected that EAR was purchasing equipment from MTD. The invoices identified the equipment that was purportedly the subject of the invoice, and listed a price at which EAR was purchasing the equipment from MTD.”
page 3 (1)

This started with an alert by Leasing News on May 2, 2007, regarding
Sheldon Player, the man behind the scheme, followed up with a telephone interview, and then several other alerts which resulted in lawsuits by almost 50 leasing companies and banks. Player died on prostate cancer on November 13, 2013.

Anstett filed personal bankruptcy. After EAR, he started InSpec Global Technologies, LLC. “…acquires and sells pre-owned equipment, refurbishes equipment, offers peripherals and parts. Warranty and support included. Come back often to view our current inventory."http://leasingnews.org/archives/July2010/7_28.htm#alert_inspec

Not named was Player’s wife who also was president at a time, and went by the name “Dorothy Malone.” She also filed bankruptcy. They also signed as personal guarantors on leases and loans for EAR.

Second Black Bank Closes this Year
Financial Difficulties Coming to Light

By Christopher Menkin

The eight former branches of Capitol City Bank & Trust Company, Atlanta, Georgia, were closed with First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, Raleigh, North Carolina, to assume all of the deposits. Established October 3, 1994, the bank had 78 full time employees as of September 30, 2014 at their four offices in Atlanta, and one each in Albany, August, Savannah, and Stone Mountain. In 2007, they had 96 full time employees.

December 31, 2014: Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio .0185%

According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the bank "serves a primarily African-American Population."

January 23, 2015, the three offices of Highland Community Bank, Chicago, Illinois, closed. It was one of the three black-owned banks left in Chicago. The two remaining are Seaway Bank & Trust Co. and Illinois Service Federal Savings & Loan Association of Chicago, both on the South Side. There have been other minority owned banks in Chicago and elsewhere that have failed in the last few years as they struggle as their neighborhoods have been hit hard and have had great difficulty in recovering economically. http://leasingnews.org/archives/Jan2015/1_26.htm#bank_beat

The difficulty is not diversifying the customer base, as well as making too many loans to friends and family, and just plain making bad loan decisions. It also may have been poor management, as evidenced by reviews from customers, such as this one dated November 6,

90 Year old C.T. Vivian, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, minister, author, and close friend and lieutenant of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., was Chairman of the Board of Capital City Bank.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._T._Vivian

He was active in bringing in investors, trying to save the bank from going under. It was too late. The bank investors lost everything.

As with Highland Community Bank, the troubles also hit the fan in 2009 for Capital City Bank and they never recovered from a net equity drop of $8.2 million drop in equity, loss of over $10 million, charge offs of $7.2 million, and current loans shooting up to $30.1 million:

As of December 31, 2014, Capitol City Bank & Trust Company had approximately $272.3 million in total assets and $262.7 million in total deposits. In addition to assuming all of the deposits of Capitol City Bank & Trust Company, First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company agreed to purchase essentially all of the failed bank's assets. This is the third bank to fail in 2015.

The FDIC estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $88.9 million.

“…There’s a story that Picasso was sitting in a bar in Paris, and a woman approached him and asked if he could do a quick sketch for her on a napkin. He drew her portrait and handed her the drawing and a request for a considerable amount of money. She was outraged. “But it only took you five minutes!” she protested. “No, madam, it took me all my life,” replied Picasso…”

When you have your resume created by a Professional Resume Writer, the time invested in crafting a custom document is not limited to the effort required to gather information about your: job target, previous experience, accomplishments, education and value to your next employer - although this is significant. Additionally, it is not limited to the several hours of time it takes your writer to choose each word and phrase carefully for maximum impact.

Although a lot of time is spent gathering and synthesizing the details of your career and designing a unique and customized resume (stay away from writers/firms that use a cookie-cutter template), the value of your professional resume originates in the skill of the writer. The writer will have developed talent through the study of effective resumes, training in modern communication techniques, and by spending thousands of hours developing and composing resumes.

You are also benefiting from what “… Picasso recognized as his biggest asset - a lifetime of knowledge and experience …” Your Professional Resume Writer knows how to paint a word portrait for you that is a snapshot of your career progression and success, designed to attract job interviews. More than a few job seekers have turned a single sheet of paper - their professionally written resume - into the job of their dreams

Ralph joined the Advisory Board June 26, 2013. For many years he has contributed, recently becoming Associate Editor for the news edition, checking spelling, grammar, punctuation, as well as noting other errors or making suggestions for the story. It is a pleasure working with him as he has a rich knowledge not only of leasing and finance history, but American history ("This Day in American History" one of his favorite features.)

Ralph is Project Management Coordinator for comScore, Inc., Reston, Virginia; a global digital analytics company providing online and mobile data and analytical tools to many of the world's largest enterprises, carriers, agencies, and publishers.

As a reader of Leasing News, Ralph has been a long time contributor and a resource of history. His background is quite unique to his present position as his nearly 40-year equipment leasing career includes: Region Manager, Ingersoll-Rand Financial Services; Vice President, NCR Credit; Vice President of Sales, AT&T Capital Corporation; Sr. Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Newcourt Financial; Co-founder, Vice President, General Manager, Dell Financial Services; VP, General Manager, Western Star Finance; Director, Canon Financial Services; and VP, Broker Services, Marlin Leasing. He has broad and successful business unit general management experience in both indirect and direct equipment leasing as a captive lessor and vendor provider that began as a credit manager. He has also made the change into analytics as it relates to consumer demographics, adoption, and behavior in this digital age of morphing technologies.

Recently, he joined the Alumni Mentoring program for Rutgers University, mentoring soon-to-be Rutgers graduates on their career aspirations, and the ACP. The ACP, American Corporate Partners (www.acp-usa.org), provides similar guidance to our returning military, assisting them in identifying and translating their skills that were executed in a military structure into concepts and language that resonate in the private sector.

Ralph and Beth will soon celebrate their 48th wedding anniversary, enjoying in northern Virginia, their three daughters, four grandchildren, and two sons-in-law. An avid reader, Ralph also has been a lifelong baseball fan dating back to Ebbets Field and the Polo Grounds, and remains a die-hard Yankees fan. He also believes in getting his money's worth on the golf course!

Three Judicial Decisions, Each with Different Facts, Yield Three Different Results. The Lessons for the Secured Creditor: Pay Careful Attention to Advertising and Notice Requirements. Cases Demonstrate That Credit Bidding Can Be a Powerful Weapon in Hands of Secured Creditors

“I don't think you got a very good look at this gun while you had it. The balance is perfect. This trigger responds to a pressure of one ounce. If you look carefully in the barrel, you'll see the lines of the rifling. It's a rarity in a hand weapon. This gun was handcrafted to my specifications, and I rarely draw it, unless I mean to use it. Would you care for a demonstration?” Richard Boone, “Have Gun Will Travel” 1960.

The right of a secured creditor to credit bid on its own collateral is a powerful gun-like weapon, enabling the secured creditor to keep the collateral while at the same time maintaining a deficiency against the borrower. But, if the operator is unskilled, the gun may go off in the creditor’s face.

Today, we have three cases which give different analyses and different results on what a secured creditor may do. Each case brings some measure of understanding as to what the secured creditor can, and cannot do. But all three cases demonstrate how powerful the credit bid weapon is, if properly managed, or conversely, how an unskilled creditor can cause the credit bid weapon to discharge in its face.

The first case is In re Fisker Automotive 2014 WL 210593 (Bkrtcy.D.Del. 2014).

Fisker Automotive built electric cars. Bad times fell upon the company. Most of the secured debt was extended by the Department of Energy and totaled about $169 million dollars. When Fisker defaulted, a third party company named Hybrid Tech Holdings purchased the DOE notes for $25 million dollars. Fisker filed for bankruptcy protection in 2013.

Fisker moved to sell substantially all its assets within the Bankruptcy action, which was well and fine with Fisker’s other creditors, as they had lined up a bid from Chinese auto parts conglomerate Wanxiang Group Corp., which offered an alternative cash bid of $35.7 million as the starting point.

But the fissures started forming, because Hybrid wanted to bid the entire $169 million dollar obligation, not just the $25 million it paid the DOE. Wanxiang was willing to start at $35.7 million, and bid more, but only if Hybrid’s credit bid was capped at $25 million. The creditors’ committee made a convincing argument that fairness dictated that Hybrid’s bid should be capped, because if Hybrid was allowed to bid the full amount of the debt, no excess cash would be realized and there would be no other bidders.

The Bankruptcy Court agreed with the creditors’ committee and stated that although Bankruptcy Code § 363 preserves the right of secured creditors to credit bid, that right is not absolute and may be curtailed “for cause.” Here, the court noted that Wanxiang recently purchased a lithium ion battery company for over $300 million dollars, which was certainly evidence of its good intentions to manufacture the electric cars in the United States. Finally, the Court noted that allowing the full credit bid would effectively stop all bidding and eliminate any recovery for the unsecured creditors.

Therefore, the Court capped the secured creditor’s bid at what it paid for the claim, $25 million dollars, and the auction was scheduled for February 14, 2014.

The lesson of the Fisker case is that when a third party is buying debt, and then going into a bankruptcy court (a court of equity and fairness), the creditor might want to assume that its right to credit bid will be limited to the amount it paid for the secured debt.

The second case is Edgewater Growth Capital Partners v HIG Capital CA 3601-CS (Delaware Chancery 2013). In a 72 page judicial decision, the Court reviewed the tortured history of an ATM service company called “Pendum,” acquired by Edgewater in 2003. Regrettably, Pendum defaulted in 2006, and Edgewater revised its credit terms to alleviate the default. By 2008, Edgewater made further capital advances with other financial partners (including creditor HIG), but the advances failed to turn Pendum around. After several attempts at conducting a private sale failed, HIG noticed a public sale, credit bid on the collateral, and acquired the assets of Pendum.

Edgewater, as a junior creditor, sued HIG, claiming that HIG’s credit bid was commercially unreasonable because of lack of advertising, the fact that the credit bid was a fraction of what the assets were really worth, and the novel argument that the sale was really a private sale, for which the UCC does not allow credit bids.

The Court methodically shot down all of those arguments. First, while there were attempted private sales, none of them were completed, so the final public sale was indeed a public sale, at which HIG could bid. Second, although the bid was indeed a fraction of the supposed value of the assets, the sale was properly noticed and no one showed up. Finally, HIG retained a sales agent, who published and advertised the sale in two National publications and disseminated sales brochures to at least 50 potential buyers, which the Court deemed adequate.

The lesson of Edgewater is that courts will respect repeated efforts to sell collateral and retaining a professional sales agent with experience in the industry being sold. Of course, lots of advertising and no one showing up didn’t help Edgewater’s cause.

The third case is Sunchang Interfashion v Stone Mountain 2013 WL 5366373 (S.D.N.Y. 2013). There, the Court shot down a credit bid in a public sale as a fraudulent conveyance. In Sunchang, principals of the secured creditor formed a related company with others. The creditor conducted a public sale, did minimal advertising, but did provide proper notice. The creditor credit bid at the public sale (at a fraction of the company’s value), and then quickly sold the assets to the related company. A junior creditor sued the transferee for fraudulent conveyance and the creditor and transferees moved to dismiss the claim.

The Court allowed the fraudulent conveyance action to go forward, noting that the allegation was that the sale was a sham and was not extensively advertised. Moreover, the fact that the transferee may have had connections to the secured creditor did not help the secured creditor’s cause.

The bottom line with this case is that the deal looked like a sham, and whether it was not was not the point. The point was that it looked fishy.

What are the lessons for secured creditors here?

First, the reason that credit bids are litigated frequently is that they are powerful weapons which allow the secured creditor to acquire the assets of its borrower and maintain a deficiency at the same time. But the foreclosure sale has to be a public sale.

Second, any secured creditor conducting a public sale should retain a sales professional who is experienced in selling the collateral in question, and has a resume to prove it. Hiring a recognized expert will go a long way to remove any doubt a court may have as to the sale’s legality.

Third, advertise and promote the sale beyond which one would normally do. An advertisement in local, regional and national papers as well as on-line resources will help the secured creditor establish commercial reasonableness.

Finally, price really is a function of the asset, the distressed foreclosure sale, and advertising. While a low price might be attractive bait for someone to complain, the Edgewater case pointed out that the fact that no one showed up pretty much sealed the deal for the court. Again, advertising and promotion is the key.

The bottom line is that secured creditors in general, and equipment lessors in particular, need to be mindful of the credit bid as a powerful weapon, if handled correctly.

(Terry retired January 1, 2015. To honor him and his many years of writing for readers of Leasing News, in the next few months we will bring up columns he has written that are still meaningful today--as most of them are. This is from May 21, 2007. Editor)

TRAC Leasing

In 1984, the U.S. Congress passed the Terminal Rental Adjustment Clause for licensed “over the road use” transportation equipment. This means business use cars, trucks, trailers etc. The 1986 Code – Subtitle F, Ch.79 defines a TRAC clause as:
“(A) In General, for purposes of this subsection, the term “terminal rental adjustment clause” means a provision of an agreement which permits or requires the rental price to be adjusted upward or downward by reference to the amount realized by the Lessor under the agreement upon sale or other disposition of such property.”

There seems to be some misunderstanding that only the short fall must be made up by the lessee and the lessor can keep the overage if one occurs. This is false as you can see from the definition above.

Sec.7701(h) goes on to say:

(h)Motor Vehicle Operating Lease,

(1) In General, for purposes of this title, in the case of a qualified motor-vehicle operating agreement which contains a terminal rental adjustment clause;
(A) Such agreement shall be treated as a lease if (but for such terminal rental adjustment clause) such agreement would be treated as a lease under this title, and
(B) The lessee shall not be treated as the owner of the property subject to an agreement during any period such agreement is in effect

(2) Qualified Motor Vehicle operating agreement defined; For purposes of this sub section,
(A) In General , the term “qualified motor vehicle operating agreement” means any agreement with respect to a motor vehicle (including a trailer) which meets the requirements of subparagraph (B), (C), and (D) of this paragraph.
(B) Minimum Liability of Lessor, An agreement meets the requirements of this subparagraph if under such agreement the sum of.
i. The amount the Lessor is personally liable to repay, and
ii. The net fair market value of the Lessor’s interest in any property pledged as security for property subject to the agreement, equals or exceeds all amounts borrowed to finance the acquisition of property subject to the agreement. There shall not be taken into account under clause (ii) any property pledged which is property subject to the agreement or property directly or indirectly financed by indebtedness secured by property subject to the agreement.
(C) Certification by Lessee: Notice of Tax Ownership, An Agreement meets the requirements of this subparagraph if such agreement contains a separate written statement separately signed by the Lessee,
i. under which the Lessee certifies, under penalty of perjury, that it intends that more than 50% of the use of the property subject to such agreement is to be in a trade or business, and
ii. which clearly and legibly states that the Lessee has been advised that it will not be treated as the owner of the property subject to the agreement for Federal income tax purposes.
(D) Lessor must have no knowledge that certification is false, Am agreement meets the requirements of this subparagraph if the Lessor does not know that the certification described in subparagraph (C) (i) is false.

I believe you can read that each and every TRAC clause must have the signed statement that the transportation equipment will be use more than 50% of the time for business even if it appears that a cement truck (as an example) could not be used for personal proposes.

In additional rulings the IRS has stated that “business use” means carrying people or goods for hire. There has always been a question of allowing permanently attached items to be included in the TRAC and it appears the IRS position is that the attachment must be used in the transportation segment because if it is just being transported to a location where it will be put to use such as an attached crane on the back of the truck then the truck is not transportation equipment any longer. However there are many schools of thought on this subject and I have not been able to find any case law to settle the issue.

TRAC leasing is very much a Tax lease and the lessor will have to take the payments in as income and use the MACRS depreciation to reduce the Tax effect.

TRAC leasing dominates the truck market but many lessors forget it also covers executive cars, pickups and light duty transportation equipment of all kinds if it carries a license to be used “over the road”. If the equipment is not licensed because it never leaves the lessees property you cannot offer a TRAC lease.

"Chola is a cutie pie that won`t be at the shelter very long so if you`re interested in adopting her, come in quickly. Hounds are even-tempered and get along well with people and other dogs. They are energetic and love to nest and cuddle. Getting a hound out of bed, off a couch or away from a fireplace will be a feat in itself. They love to sleep after a long day and are the perfect companion dogs for watching television. They are easy to train and make excellent pets if well exercised. Get acquainted with this dog off leash in one of our family run areas. Most dogs will need to run off some energy before they settle down and get acquainted with you."

The wintry west extends his blast,
And hail and rain does blaw;
Or the stormy north sends driving forth
The blinding sleet and snaw:
While, tumbling brown, the burn comes down,
And roars frae bank to brae;
And bird and beast in covert rest,
And pass the heartless day.

"The sweeping blast, the sky o'ercast,"
The joyless winter day
Let others fear, to me more dear
Than all the pride of May:
The tempest's howl, it soothes my soul,
My griefs it seems to join;
The leafless trees my fancy please,
Their fate resembles mine!

Thou Power Supreme, whose mighty scheme
These woes of mine fulfil,
Here firm I rest; they must be best,
Because they are Thy will!
Then all I want-O do Thou grant
This one request of mine!-
Since to enjoy Thou dost deny,
Assist me to resign.

1621 - Miles Standish was appointed first commander of Plymouth colony.
1755 - Birthday of Catherine Littlefield Greene in New Shoreham, RI. She is, perhaps, the actual inventor of the cotton gin but every book on the subject differs as to the extent of her contribution. At the very least, she had the detailed idea of how it worked but it was Eli Whitney who filed for the patent. Some say he improved upon the original. He lived on the Greene's plantation. She showed Whitney how to clear the device of seeds and how the machine worked. Another said it was her idea and she had Whitney, a mechanic, make the device and he patented it because a woman couldn't hold a patent at the time. Despite the social and economic impact of the invention, Whitney lost his profits in legal battles over patent infringement as his original intention was to form a business to clean cotton, not produce machines. He died at age 59 of prostate cancer on January 8, 1825, in New Haven, CT, leaving a widow and four children. Greene was the wife of Revolutionary War general Nathanael Greene known for his successful command in the Southern Campaign, forcing British general Charles Cornwallis to abandon the Carolinas and head for Virginia toward defeat. She died in 1814.
1761 - Still surviving today in some East Coast communities, and considered landmarks as they exist today are “milestones” between cities. There were stone blocks with mileage to mark the highways. Originally they were set by the directors of an insurance company known as the Philadelphia Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses from Loss by Fire. On this day, they agreed “to apply their fines (a forfeiture of one shilling for not meeting precisely at the hour appointed, and two shillings for total absence) in purchasing Stones to be erected on the Road leading from Philadelphia toward Trenton, the distance of a mile from another with the Number of miles from Philadelphia, to be cut in each stone, and Thos, Wharton and Jacob Lewis are requested to Contract for the same.” On May 15, 1764, at five o'clock in the morning, the two men starting out from front and Market streets, taking with them the Surveyor General of the Province, and plated a stone at the end of every mile. They planted the 29th milestone near the edge of the Delaware River, and gave their two remaining stones to be planted on the Jersey side of the road to New York. http://www.route40.net/history/milestones/index.shtmlhttp://www.societe-jersiaise.org/alexgle/stonejsymilestones.htmlhttp://www.geocities.com/jphistoricalsociety/markers.html
1801 – The House of Representatives broke an Electoral College tie vote and Presidential candidate Thomas Jefferson won support of a majority of congressional Representatives, displacing incumbent John Adams. Jefferson's triumph brought an end to one of the most acrimonious presidential campaigns in U.S. history and resolved a serious Constitutional crisis. Republican Jefferson
(an offshoot of the Democrat-Republican party) defeated Federalist John Adams by a margin of 73 to 65 electoral votes. When presidential electors cast their votes, however, they failed to distinguish between the office of president and vice president on their ballots. Jefferson and his running mate Aaron Burr each received 73 votes. With the votes tied, the election was thrown to the House of Representatives. There, each state voted as a unit to decide the election. Burr publicly professed support for Jefferson, is fellow Republican, but did nothing to take himself out of the race, even though the Republicans intended that Burr become vice-president. Many Federalists favored Burr for president, but Alexander Hamilton, the leading Federalist, detested Burr and worked behind the scenes on Jefferson's behalf, despite his disagreement with Jefferson's policies. For six days, Jefferson and Burr essentially ran against each other in the House. Votes were tallied over thirty times, yet neither man captured the necessary majority of nine states. Eventually, a small group of Federalists, led by James A. Bayard of Delaware, reasoned that a peaceful transfer of power required the majority choose the President, and a deal was struck in Jefferson's favor. On the 36th ballot, barely two weeks before a new president was to be inaugurated, Jefferson received a majority vote when certain Federalists gave up their support of Burr. Burr was elected Vice-President. Jefferson was inaugurated on March 4, 1801. Adopted in 1804, the Twelfth Amendment to the Constitution provides that electors "name in their ballots the person voted for as president, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as vice president." Just three years after his vice-presidential inauguration, Aaron Burr shot and fatally wounded Alexander Hamilton in a duel. Hamilton, a longtime political antagonist of Burr, played a key role in breaking the congressional stalemate in Jefferson's favor.http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/feb17.html
1817 - The first gas street lights through a city were installed in Baltimore, MD by the Gas Light Company. On June 19, 1816, the mayor and council authorized the company, whose officers included the artist Rembrandt Peale, to lay pipes for the manufacture and distribution of gas “to provide for more effectually lighting the streets, squares, lanes and alleys of the city of Baltimore.” Coal gas was used. The first engineer of the company was David Pugh.
1819 – The House of Representatives passed the Missouri Compromise for the first time.
1844 – Aaron Montgomery Ward was born in Chatham, NJ. Ward was an entrepreneur based in Chicago who made his fortune through the use of mail order for retail sales of general merchandise to rural customers. In 1872, he founded Montgomery Ward & Company, which became nationally known and grew into a department store.
1864 - The Confederate hand-propelled submarine Huntley, armed with a ram torpedo, attacked the USS Housatonic in the Charleston Harbor. Its torpedo was a mine placed onto the end of a long pole. When the Huntley hit the Housatonic with the mine, the resulting explosion sank both vessels. This was the first time in US warfare that a submarine successfully sank another ship.
1865 - After a siege that lasted almost a year and a half, Fort Sumter in South Carolina returned to Union hands. The site of the first shots fired in the American Civil War, the fort had become a symbol for both sides during the war. As Union attempts to retake it by shelling diminished the fort's capacity with large bombardments, Southern forces managed to hold out with few casualties.
1865 - Columbia, South Carolina was set afire while being entered by federal troops under General William Tecumseh Sherman. Bales of cotton were put to the torch, perhaps by Confederates, to prevent their falling into federal hands. Strong winds scattered the burning cotton across most of the city. On 11 February 1865, Sherman learned that only a cavalry unit was between him and Columbia. This was ample proof that his strategy of indirect approach was effective since the Confederates were more concerned about protecting Augusta and Charleston than the state capital. Sherman occupied Columbia on 18 February 1865. When Sherman's forces entered the city, they found it littered with broken furniture and other household items left by the pillaging Confederate soldiers and civilians. The railroad depot and a large storage building had been burned to the ground. Bales of cotton piled in the middle of many streets had been torn open, and lint was flying around. Fires were still burning when the initial troops entered the city and they turned to putting out the fires. That night, the smoldering cotton bales, fanned by the high winds and possibly fueled by drunken soldiers and civilians, spread a great fire. Union soldiers attempting to put out the fire could only look on in misery as it consumed building after building. The next morning, the population looked out on their city and saw vast destruction. While two-thirds of the city remained standing that morning, churches, most stores, and many of the most expensive houses were in ruins. Although Sherman did not order the city burned, the simple fact that he was there when the city was burnt placed the blame clearly on his shoulders to many Southerners. When Sherman left Columbia on 20 February 1865, Sherman's soldiers again acted on Sherman's total war policy and put to torch anything of military value. It was his goal to stop all modes of supply transportation which started with blocking traffic up the Mississippi and Atlantic Ocean ports, with an emphasis on destroying railroad junctions and the tracks themselves.http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/I?cwar:1:./temp/~ammem_V8LM::displayType=
1:m856sd=cwpb:m856sf=03379:@@@http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/I?cwar:3:./temp/~ammem_V8LM::displayType=
1:m856sd=cwp:m856sf=4a40429:@@@http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/hargrett/barnard/jpgs/plate53.jpghttp://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/hargrett/barnard/jpgs/plate54.jpghttp://www.archives.nd.edu/barnard/sbio.htmlhttp://members.aol.com/x69xer/odds.html#therailroads
1870 - Esther Morris was appointed to be the first female judge. She was made Justice of the Peace in South Pass City, WT.
1870 - Mississippi became the ninth state readmitted to US after Civil War
1874 – Thomas J. Watson was born in Campbell, NY. He served as the chairman and CEO of IBM and oversaw the company's growth into an international force from 1914 to 1956.
1876 - In Eastport, Maine, Julius Wolff was credited as the first person to can sardines in metal. Although the canning of sardines in bottles began in Europe in 1834, it was not until the Franco-Prussian War of the early 1870s cut off the supply to America that the opportunity was provided to can sardines in America. In 1875, the commission house of Wolff and Reising, under the direction of Julius Wolff, began its first successful American sardine cannery in Eastport. At its height, there were 22 sardine factories in Eastport at one time. The cans were soldered together in three pieces, a time consuming process. In 1903, machine-made and machine- sealed cans replaced the three-piece soldered cans.http://www.qbyv.com/history_of_can.htmhttp://www.port-louis.org/en/_fishing.htmlhttp://www.worldandi.com/specialreport/2002/april/Sa22204.htmhttp://www.stavanger.museum.no/Eng/Hermetikk/hermhist.htmhttp://www.mtycounty.com/pgs-misc/cannery-row.htmlhttp://www.kosherquest.org/html/
Condiments%20&%20Cannd%20Goods%202001.htmhttp://www.photolib.noaa.gov/historic/nmfs/herr1.htmlhttp://www.mainepreservation.com/dayswork/images/SARDINE1_000.jpghttp://www.mainepreservation.com/dayswork/images/Eastprt_000.gif
1878 – The first telephone exchange opened in San Francisco with 18 phones.
1893 – Wally Pipp was born in Chicago. Pipp played in the Majors for the Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, and Cincinnati Reds between 1913 and 1928, and he was considered to be one of the best power hitters of the dead ball era. Pipp is now best remembered as the man who lost his starting job to Lou Gehrig at the beginning of Gehrig's streak of 2,130 consecutive games. According to a popular legend, Pipp asked to sit due to a headache. Now, whenever a player sits out and is replaced, he is said to be “Pipped”.
1897 - The Parent-Teacher Association (national) was organized as the National Congress of Mothers in Washington DC, by Alice McLellan Birney and Phoebe Apperson Hearst at a meeting attended by 2,000 persons. At the annual meeting of March 9, 1908, the name was changed to the National Congress of Mothers and Parent-Teacher Associations. On May 9, 1924, the name was changed to the National Congress of Parents and Teachers.
1899 - The first six-day bicycle race, featuring two-man teams, came to an end at New York's Madison Square Garden. The race finished in a blizzard that was sweeping the entire Northeast and Southeast of the United States. The winning team of Charles Miller and Frank Waller rode a combined distance of 2,733 miles.
1902 - Birthday of Marian Anderson in Philadelphia. Considered to be the greatest voice of the 20th century, she was the first woman of color to sing with the Metropolitan Opera. She sang with the major orchestras and opera companies of the world and performed before major heads of state. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963. In 1939, when the Daughters of American Revolution (DAR) refused to allow her to sing in their hall because of her race, Eleanor Roosevelt, among others, quit the organization and organized an outdoor concert at the Lincoln Memorial instead.
1908 - Walter Lanier “Red” Barber’s birthday at Columbus, MS. One of the first broadcasters inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, "The Ole Redhead’s” first professional play-by-play experience was announcing the Cincinnati Reds opening day on radio in 1934. That game was also the first major league game he had ever seen. Barber brought a casual, southern tone to the game and is known for several phrases that are repeated today: “Rhubarb”, “sittin’ in the catbird’s seat”, “wo-ho doctor”. He broadcast baseball's first night game (in Brooklyn) on Aug 26, 1939; Jackie Robinson’s first game in the Majors, breaking the color line in 1947; and while a Yankee radio announcer, he called Roger Maris's 61st home run in 1961, that broke Babe Ruth’s single season HR record. Later in his career he had a radio program on NPR called “Fridays with Red”. Barber died Oct 22, 1992, at Tallahassee, FL.
1908 - Birthday of Flash Gordon, also known as Clarence Lindon “Buster” Crabbe, Olympic gold medal swimmer, at Oakland, CA. Crabbe's first-place finish in the 400-meter freestyle was the only swimming medal won by an American at the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. After his swimming career was over, he played Tarzan, Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers in the movies. These appeared on early television, and I very well remember both Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. By the way, there were no residuals for any of the actors, writers, directors of any movies until 1960. Residuals for “made for TV” shows were limited to five payments until 1979 when it went to nine payments. There were other minor changes, but it was not until 2001 that expanded this. Buster Crabbe died at Scottsdale, AZ, 1983 and never received any residuals for his movies on TV.
1911 – The first hydroplane flight to and from a ship was completed by Glenn Curtiss in San Diego.
1911 - The first electric self-starter was installed in a Cadillac by General Motors. Until this time, all cars needed to be started by cranking a starting handle which was hard work and caused multiple minor injuries when the car backfired during the starting process.
1913 - The first Modern art exhibition of importance opened at the 69th Regiment Armory in New York City. The controversial exhibition, organized chiefly by the American modernist painter Arthur Bowen Davies, scandalized the public with such avant-garde works as Marcel Duchamp's “Nude Descending a Spiral Staircase.” More than 250,000 visitors received their first look at paintings by Paul Cezanne, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, Edward Hopper, Henri Matisse, John Marin, Charles Scheeler, and others.
1915 - Edward Stone, the first US combatant to die in World War I, is mortally wounded
1923 – The first minimum wage law took effect, in Oregon.
1923 - Birthday of clarinet player Buddy DeFranco, born Bonifacio Ferdinando Leonardo Defranco, Camden, NJhttp://www.artistdirect.com/music/artist/bio/0,,421834,00.html?
artist=Buddy+DeFrancohttp://www.npr.org/programs/jazzprofiles/archive/defranco.htmlhttp://www.buddydefranco.com/
1923 – A. W. Clausen was born Alden Winship Clausen in Hamilton, IL. He was President and CEO of Bank of America in 1970 and again in 1986, and he was President of the World Bank, 1981 to 1986. During his time at B of A, he helped it grow into the biggest commercial bank in the US.
1924 – Margaret Truman was born in Independence, MO, the only child of Harry Truman and First Lady Bess Truman. She was "a witty, hard-working Midwestern girl with singing talent who was neither particularly pretty nor terribly plain." Later, she became the successful author of a series of murder mysteries and a number of works on U.S. First Ladies and First Families, including a biography of her father. After operatic vocal training, Truman's singing career began with a debut radio recital in March 1947. Reviewers were not always kind, but her father was fiercely protective: when in 1950, Washington Post music critic Paul Hume wrote that Truman was "extremely attractive on the stage... [but] cannot sing very well. She is flat a good deal of the time. And still cannot sing with anything approaching professional finish," President Truman wrote to Hume, "Someday, I hope to meet you. When that happens you'll need a new nose, a lot of beefsteak for black eyes, and perhaps a supporter below!" She died in 2008.
1925 - Harold Ross and Jane Grant founded The New Yorker magazine; the debut issue was dated February 21, 1925.
1925 – Actor Hal Holbrook was born in Cleveland, OH.
1926 - Lee Holby birthday, composer, concert pianist, born Madison, WI.
1930 - Eureka, CA, reported an all-time record high of 85 degrees, a record which lasted until September of 1983.
1933 – The Blaine Act ended Prohibition.
1933 – Bobby Lewis was born in Indianapolis. In July 1961, his "Tossin’ and Turnin’" was #1 for seven weeks on the Billboard chart, sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disk. Later that year, he had a second Top Ten song, "One Track Mind", his only other major hit record, at #9 Pop.
1933 – Newsweek magazine was first published.
1934 – The first driving course to be offered in a high school, State College, PA.
1936 - James Nathaniel “Jim” Brown’s birthday in St. Simons Island, GA. Pro Football Hall of Famer in his first year of eligibility in 1971. In 2002, he was named by The Sporting News as the greatest professional football player ever. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest professional athletes in the history of the United States. Brown was raised in Manhasset, NY where he held the Long Island record by averaging 38 points per game in basketball, a record that was broken by Carl Yastrzemski, later of the Boston Red Sox. At Syracuse University, he achieved an All-American football career and also was considered one of the best lacrosse players in the US, as well as excelling in track and basketball. His senior year was considered by many to have earned the Heisman Trophy that went instead to Notre Dame’s Paul Hornung whose team finished 2-8. Brown was taken in the first round of the 1957 draft by the Cleveland Browns. He departed after the 1965 season as the NFL record holder for both single-season (1,863 in 1963) and career rushing (12,312) yards, as well as the all-time leader in rushing touchdowns (106), total touchdowns (126), and all-purpose yards (15,549). He was the first player ever to reach the 100-rushing-touchdowns milestone, and only a few others have done so since, despite the league's expansion to a 16-game season in 1978. Brown's first four seasons were only 12 games, and his last five were 14 games. Brown's record of scoring 100 touchdowns in only 93 games stood until 2006, 40 years after his retirement. Brown holds the record for total seasons leading the NFL in all-purpose yards (5), and is the only rusher in NFL history to average over 100 yards per game for a career. His career average per rush is 5.2 yards. Post-retirement, Brown had a modest acting career, including films, “The Dirty Dozen” and “1000 Rifles”. He has also been an activist, founding the Amer-I-can program for inner city gang youths that has been successful in acclimating them to responsible self-accountability and life skills. Approaching his 80th birthday, he still looks like he could run over people in the NFL.
1936 - The temperature at McIntosh, SD plunged to 58 degrees below zero to establish a state record
1938 - Slim Gaillard and Slam Stewart cut “Flat Foot Gloogie.”
1938 – In London, the first public experimental demonstration of Baird color TV.
1940 - British destroyers board German Altmark off neutral Norway (at that time) and free Allied POW's
1941 - Singer Gene Pitney was born in Hartford, Connecticut. He first gained fame as a songwriter, penning "Hello Mary Lou" for Ricky Nelson and "He's a Rebel" for the Crystals. In 1961, Pitney went into the recording studio himself, playing and overdubbing every instrument and multi-tracking his vocals. The result was his first hit, "(I Wanna) Love My Life Away." Gene Pitney had more than 20 chart singles during the '60s, including "(The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance," "Only Love Can Break a Heart" and "It Hurts to Be in Love."
1942 – African-American political and urban activist Huey Newton was born in Monroe, LA. With Bobby Seale, he co-founded the Black Panther Party in 1966. Newton had a long series of confrontations with law enforcement, including several convictions, while he participated in political activism. He continued to pursue an education, eventually earning a Ph.D. in Social Science. Newton spent time in prison for manslaughter due to his alleged involvement in a shooting that killed a police officer, but was later acquitted. In 1989 he was shot and killed in Oakland, CA by Tyrone "Double R" Robinson, a member of the Black Guerilla Family.
1943 – The Yankees’ Joe DiMaggio enlisted in the Army.
1944 - JOHNSTON, WILLIAM J., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company G, 180th Infantry, 45th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Padiglione, Italy, 1719 February 1944. Entered service at: Colchester, Conn. Birth: Trenton, N.J. G.O. No.: 73, 6 September 1944. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. On 17 February 1944, near Padiglione, Italy, he observed and fired upon an attacking force of approximately 80 Germans, causing at least 25 casualties and forcing withdrawal of the remainder. All that day he manned his gun without relief, subject to mortar, artillery, and sniper fire. Two Germans individually worked so close to his position that his machinegun was ineffective, whereupon he killed 1 with his pistol, the second with a rifle taken from another soldier. When a rifleman protecting his gun position was killed by a sniper, he immediately moved the body and relocated the machinegun in that spot in order to obtain a better field of fire. He volunteered to cover the platoon's withdrawal and was the last man to leave that night. In his new position he maintained an all-night vigil, the next day causing 7 German casualties. On the afternoon of the 18th, the organization on the left flank having been forced to withdraw, he again covered the withdrawal of his own organization. Shortly thereafter, he was seriously wounded over the heart, and a passing soldier saw him trying to crawl up the embankment. The soldier aided him to resume his position behind the machinegun which was soon heard in action for about 10 minutes. Though reported killed, Pfc. Johnston was seen returning to the American lines on the morning of 19 February slowly and painfully working his way back from his overrun position through enemy lines. He gave valuable information of new enemy dispositions. His heroic determination to destroy the enemy and his disregard of his own safety aided immeasurably in halting a strong enemy attack, caused an enormous amount of enemy casualties, and so inspired his fellow soldiers that they fought for and held a vitally important position against greatly superior forces.
1944 - The Japanese naval base at Truk, Caroline Islands, was bombed by Allied aircraft destroying 201 planes.http://www.ecophotoexplorers.com/chuuk.asphttp://www.saipan1.com/phm/maps/truk/index.htmhttp://www.mansell.com/pow_resources/camplists/other/truk.html
1945 - *HAMMERBERG, OWEN FRANCIS PATRICK, Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Boatswain's Mate Second Class, U.S. Navy. Born: 31 May 1920, Daggett, Mich. Accredited to: Michigan. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a diver engaged in rescue operations at West Loch, Pearl Harbor, 17 February 1945. Aware of the danger when 2 fellow divers were hopelessly trapped in a cave-in of steel wreckage while tunneling with jet nozzles under an LST sunk in 40 feet of water and 20 feet of mud. Hammerberg unhesitatingly went overboard in a valiant attempt to effect their rescue despite the certain hazard of additional cave-ins and the risk of fouling his lifeline on jagged pieces of steel imbedded in the shifting mud. Washing a passage through the original excavation, he reached the first of the trapped men, freed him from the wreckage and, working desperately in pitch-black darkness, finally effected his release from fouled lines, thereby enabling him to reach the surface. Wearied but undaunted after several hours of arduous labor, Hammerberg resolved to continue his struggle to wash through the oozing submarine, subterranean mud in a determined effort to save the second diver. Venturing still farther under the buried hulk, he held tenaciously to his purpose, reaching a place immediately above the other man just as another cave-in occurred and a heavy piece of steel pinned him crosswise over his shipmate in a position which protected the man beneath from further injury while placing the full brunt of terrific pressure on himself. Although he succumbed in agony 18 hours after he had gone to the aid of his fellow divers, Hammerberg, by his cool judgment, unfaltering professional skill and consistent disregard of all personal danger in the face of tremendous odds, had contributed effectively to the saving of his 2 comrades. His heroic spirit of self-sacrifice throughout enhanced and sustained the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life in the service of his country.
1945 - HERRING, RUFUS G., Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Lieutenant, U.S. Naval Reserve, LCI (G) 449. Place and date: Iwo Jima, 17 February 1945. Entered service at: North Carolina. Born: 11 June 1921, Roseboro, N.C. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commanding officer of LCI (G) 449 operating as a unit of LCI (G) Group 8, during the pre-invasion attack on Iwo Jima on 17 February 1945. Boldly closing the strongly fortified shores under the devastating fire of Japanese coastal defense guns, Lt. (then Lt. (j.g.)) Herring directed shattering barrages of 40mm. and 20mm. gunfire against hostile beaches until struck down by the enemy's savage counter fire which blasted the 449's heavy guns and whipped her decks into sheets of flame. Regaining consciousness despite profuse bleeding he was again critically wounded when a Japanese mortar crashed the conning station, instantly killing or fatally wounding most of the officers and leaving the ship wallowing without navigational control. Upon recovering the second time, Lt. Herring resolutely climbed down to the pilothouse and, fighting against his rapidly waning strength, took over the helm, established communication with the engine room, and carried on valiantly until relief could be obtained. When no longer able to stand, he propped himself against empty shell cases and rallied his men to the aid of the wounded; he maintained position in the firing line with his 20mm. guns in action in the face of sustained enemy fire, and conned his crippled ship to safety. His unwavering fortitude, aggressive perseverance, and indomitable spirit against terrific odds reflect the highest credit upon Lt. Herring and uphold the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
1946 – Dodie Stevens was born Geraldine Ann Pasquale in Chicago. She is best known for her 1959 song "Pink Shoe Laces", which she performed at 13 years old…”I gotta guy and his name is Dooley. He’s my guy and I love him truly…”
1947 – The Voice of America began broadcasting to the Soviet Union.
1949 - Richard (Dick) Button beat his competitors in Paris, France, to hold onto the men's figure skating championship world title. Button is now a figure skating commentator at events around the world for American television, including Olympics competition.
1949 - Pianist George Shearing records “September in the Rain.”
1952 - Top Hits
“Slowpoke” - Pee Wee King
“Cry” - Johnnie Ray
“Anytime” - Eddie Fisher
“Give Me More, More, More (Of Your Kisses)” - Lefty Frizzell
1953 – Red Sox star and Marine Corps pilot Ted Williams was uninjured as his plane was shot down in Korea. Moments after he ran from the burning plane, it exploded.
1954 - In the United States, Doris Day's single, "Secret Love", became the #1 song. From the motion picture, "Calamity Jane", the song spent 3 weeks at the top of the music charts.
1955 - At the recommendation of R&B artist Lloyd Price, Richard Penniman, who was leading an ensemble called Little Richard and The Upsetters, sent a demo tape to Specialty Records founder Art Rupe. After some initial reluctance, Rupe signed Penniman to a contract that will pay the singer a half cent for every record sold.
1958 - The greatest snowstorm of the mid-20th century struck the northeastern U.S. The storm produced 30 inches of snow in interior New England, including more than 19 inches in 24 hours at the Boston Airport. The same storm produced up to three feet of snow in the Middle Atlantic Coast Region, with 14 inches at Washington, D.C., and 15.5 inches at Baltimore, MD. The storm resulted in 43 deaths and 500 million dollars damage over the Middle Atlantic Coast States
1958 – Still at the height of his NFL career, the star of the New York Giants football team, Frank Gifford, signed a seven-year film contract with Warner Brothers, which did not make him a movie star despite the studio's expectations. Gifford then went into broadcasting. His first job was as a sportscaster for New York's WCBS-TV, before he moved to WABC-TV in New York, then went to network television as the primary play-by-play announcer. Eventually Gifford became color commentator on ABC's "Monday Night Football". Gifford also was the victim of one of the game’s most vicious…and legal…hits when, in 1960, after catching a short pass over the middle, he was clothes-lined by Eagles LB and future Hall of Famer, Chuck Bednarik. Gifford was knocked unconscious and many of his teammates, when they saw him on the stretcher, thought he was dead. He remained sidelined for the remainder of that season and all of 1961. When they appear together…like Thompson and Branca, and Mookie Wilson and Bill Buckner did, Bednarik had the event sponsors shut off all the lights in the room, then yell, “Hey, Frank, look familiar?”
1960 - After achieving more than 15 million in sales with Cadence Records, The Everly Brothers sign a ten year, $1 million contract with Warner Brothers records.
1960 - Elvis Presley received his first gold album for "Elvis," which included such songs as "Rip It Up," "Old Shep" and "Ready Teddy."
1960 - Top Hits
“Teen Angel” - Mark Dinning
“Handy Man” - Jimmy Jones
“The Theme from ‘A Summer Place’ “ - Percy Faith
“He'll Have to Go” - Jim Reeves
1962 - The Beach Boys first hit, "Surfin", swept California. They had a national hit in the United States when "Surfin' Safari" hit the music charts in August of this same year.
1962 - Gene Chandler took the #1 spot with "Duke of Earl" for a three week stay. The song also hit #1 on the rhythm & blues charts. Out of the 6 songs Chandler recorded, "Duke of Earl" was his biggest hit. His only million seller was 1970's "Groovy Situation". Curtis Mayfield wrote several hits for Chandler, such as: "Just Be True", "What Now" and "Nothing Can Stop Me". Chandler's real name is Eugene Dixon. From 1969 to 1973, he owned his own record label, Mr. Chand, but his million seller was recorded for Mercury Records in 1970.
1962 – Wilt Chamberlain of the Philadelphia Warriors scored 67 against the St. Louis Hawks.
1963 - Michael Jeffrey Jordan birthday, former basketball player, former minor league baseball player, born Brooklyn. Arguably the NBAs greatest player, Jordan was the leader of six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls, and might have won more if it were not for his decision to retire in mid-career to play baseball.
1964 - Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass appear in their first major concert in Los Angeles. Over the next three years, they will become one of the most successful instrumental acts in history, achieving twelve Billboard Top 40 hits.
1964 - In Wesberry v. Sanders, the Supreme Court ruled that congressional districts must be approximately equal in population.
1965 - Comedienne Joan Rivers’ first guest appearances on NBC-TV's "The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson". Later she became Carson's permanent guest host until, in 1986, signing for a late-night show deal with FOX television as the first woman to host a late night network television talk show. Johnny was offended and banned her permanently from the show. She returned to “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in Feb, 2014 for the first time in nearly 30 years. Rivers unfortunately passed away in surgery on September 4, 2014.
1965 - "The Tennessee Waltz" was declared Tennessee's state song. The tune provided hit records for Patti Page, Cowboy Copas and its composer, Pee Wee King. Page's recording featured one of the first uses of multi-tracking in which the singer appeared to sing harmony with herself.
1965 - The Ranger 8 probe launched on its mission to photograph the Mare Tranquillitatis region of the Moon in preparation for the manned Apollo missions. Mare Tranquillitatis or the "Sea of Tranquility" would become the site chosen for the Apollo 11 lunar landing.
1966 - RCA Victor awarded Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler a gold record, for the album and the single of "The Ballad of the Green Berets". Sadler recorded one other single, "The "A" Team", for the label. He served in Vietnam until a leg injury from a Viet Cong booby trap sent him home. In 1988, Sadler was shot in the head during an attempted robbery at his Guatemala home. He suffered brain damage and at 49 years old, died of heart failure in November, 1989 in Tennessee.
1966 - The Beach Boys begin recording sessions for Brian Wilson's masterpiece, "Good Vibrations". Multiple layered overdubs spread out over eleven sessions would make this the most expensive single ever recorded to date. Although the record would top charts around the world and sell millions of copies, it would be The Beach Boys' last to reach the Billboard Top 10 for ten years.
1966 – The UK’s #1 hit: Nancy Sinatra – “These Boots Are Made for Walking”
1967 - The Beatles release the double A-sided single in the United States with “Penny Lane” (Paul McCartney) on one side and "Strawberry Fields Forever" (John Lennon) on the other side.
1968 - Top Hits
“Love is Blue” - Paul Mauriat
“I Wish It Would Rain” - The Temptations
“(Theme From) Valley of the Dolls” - Dionne Warwick
“Skip a Rope” - Henson Cargill
1968 - In Springfield, Massachusetts, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame opened.
1968 - Big Brother and the Holding Company, featuring singer Janis Joplin, are signed by Columbia after a performance at the Anderson Theatre in New York City.
1969 - Bob Dylan began recording at Columbia Studios in Nashville with Johnny Cash. Few of the tracks laid down were ever released officially, although a bootleg album "The Dylan-Cash Session" made its appearance.
1971 - James Taylor made his prime time television debut on ABC’s “The Johnny Cash Show”, singing “Fire and Rain” and “Carolina on My Mind”. A few channels over, Cash is the guest of honor on NBC-TV's “This Is Your Life”. 1971 - Elton John’s U.S. debut goes gold. His first U.K. LP, "Empty Sky" is not issued in the States until 1975, by which time John has become a rock star of the first magnitude. He arrived in the States under much publicity in the summer of '70 and was hailed by Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times as the first Superstar of the Seventies. "Elton John" hit #4
1972 - Pink Floyd premiered "Dark Side of the Moon" in concert at London's Rainbow Theatre. When the album of the same title was released a year later, it made Pink Floyd one of rock's biggest acts. "Dark Side of the Moon" sold more than four-million copies. In 1980, it became the longest-charting rock LP in Billboard's history at 303 weeks. It was still on the album charts eight years later.
1972 - Jonathan Edwards is awarded a gold record for "Sunshine," the lone hit for the Virginia folkie. He handles his brief fame in typical laid-back fashion. Instead of buying himself a fancy Porsche, he got himself a fancy truck
1972 - Green Day singer/guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong is born.
1972 - President Richard Nixon left the White House to visit Red China. He was the first President to visit a nation not recognized by the federal government. This was also the first trip to China, the world's most populous nation, by any American President. Accompanied by a small army of journalists, he arrived in Beijing on February 21 for talks with Chairman Mao Zedong and Premier Zhou Enlai. Later that year, Nixon became the first President to visit the Soviet Union when he arrived in Moscow on May 22 for a summit with Soviet leaders. Among the agreements that were reached during the visit was the Strategic Arms Limitations Treaty, signed by President Nixon and the Soviet leader Leonid I. Brezhnev on May 26, which limited both nations to 200 anti-ballistic missiles each, divided between two defensive systems.
1972 – Sales of the popular VW Beetle surpassed those of the Ford Model T.
1972 - KDAY in Los Angeles played two new Rolling Stones songs on the air, after getting their hands on tapes stolen from producer Jimmy Miller's home.
1975 - John Lennon releases "Rock n' Roll," his final record before a self-imposed five year exile from the music business. It reaches #6 on the chart and doesn't stay for long, falling fast.
1976 - Top Hits
“50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” - Paul Simon
“Love to Love You Baby” - Donna Summer
“You Sexy Thing” - Hot Chocolate
“The White Knight” - Cledus Maggard & the Citizen's Band
1976 - The Eagles "Their Greatest Hits" album was released. It would eventually sell more than 22 million copies in the US, second only to Michael Jackson's "Thriller."
1976 - Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatrical society gives its annual "Women of the Year" award to Bette Midler. Upon accepting, she comments: "This award characterizes what the American male wants in a woman--brains, talents and gorgeous tits." Saw her recently at the San Jose Compaq Arena, “Kiss My Brass,” and she was better than ever, more topical than ever, and just plain terrific.
1979 - “A Prairie Home Companion” premieres on radio. This popular live variety show debuted locally on Minnesota Public Radio in 1974 and was first broadcast nationally on Feb 17, 1979 as part of National Public Radio's Folk Festival USA. It became a regular Saturday night program in early 1980. Host Garrison Keillor's monologues about the mythical Lake Wobegon and his humorous ads for local businesses such as Bertha's Kitty Boutique, Powdermilk Biscuits and the Chatterbox Cafe were accompanied by various musical groups. Broadcast from the World Theater in St. Paul, MN, the show went off the air in 1986. A series of programs was done for cable TV, and Keillor continues to write works of fiction (“Lake Wobegon Days”). In 1994, "A Prairie Home Companion" went back on the air on Public Radio International.
1981 – Chrysler recorded the largest loss in US history.
1983 - Linda Ronstadt, Nicolette Larson, Chaka Khan, Dave Mason and Helen Reddy were the hosts of a skating party in Los Angeles to raise campaign funds for California Governor Jerry Brown's presidential campaign. He then began to date Linda Ronstadt, and it is said their trip, while not married, to Africa together was the down fall of his candidacy for President.
1984 - Top Hits
“Karma Chameleon” - Culture Club
“Joanna” - Kool & The Gang
“Jump” - Van Halen
“That's the Way Love Goes” - Merle Haggard
1987 – The Yankees’ Don Mattingly won the highest arbitration award to date, $1,975,000 per year
1989 - Chicago Flag Display Controversy. An exhibit at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, titled ‘What is the Proper Way to Display a US Flag?’, consisted of a ledger for viewers to write their impressions but required the viewers to stand on a US flag mounted on the floor to reach the ledger. The exhibit by art student Scott Tyler prompted protests from veterans' groups, a failed lawsuit and an introduction of legislation by Senator Bob Dole to make displaying a US flag on the floor or ground a crime. Although that legislation didn't pass, Congress continues to introduce legislation against flag desecration, most recently in 1999.
1989 - Top Hits
“Straight Up” - Paula Abdul
“Lost In Your Eyes” - Debbie Gibson
“Wild Thing” - Tone-Loc 2
“The Lover In Me” - Sheena Easton
1990 - Aerosmith appears on Saturday Night Live where they perform a version of the Wayne's World theme song during a skit in which they appeared as themselves.
1990 - The biggest winter storm of the season hit the Pacific Coast Region. In northern California, snow fell along the coast, and two day totals in the mountains ranged up to 67 inches at Echo Summit. Snowfall totals in the mountains of southern California ranged up to 48 inches at Green Valley, with 46 inches reported at Big Bear. Up to two feet of snow blanketed the southern Cascade Mountains of Oregon, and 20 to 35 inches were reported in the northern Cascades of Oregon. Up to ten inches of snow blanketed Seattle, WA.
1990 - "Opposites Attract", by Paula Abdul with The Wild Pair, was #1 in the U.S. for the second of three weeks. On the Country chart, "On Second Thought", by Eddie Rabbitt, was #1 for the first of two weeks.
1990 – Notre Dame became NBC-TV obtained the television rights to all of Notre Dame's home football games for the next five years, the first school to sell its games to a major TV network.
1992 - Jeffrey Dahmer was sentenced today to 15 consecutive life sentences and will never be eligible for parole by a Wisconsin court, for necrophilia and cannibalism on 15 young men and boys. On November 28, 1994, he was murdered by a fellow inmate, who bludgeoned him to death with a metal bar.
1994 - Top Hits
“The Power Of Love” - Celine Dion
“All For Love” - Bryan Adams/Rod Stewart/Sting
“The Sign” - Ace Of Base
“Breathe Again” - Toni Braxton
1995 - Colin Ferguson was convicted of six counts of murder in the December, 1993 Long Island Rail Road shootings that also wounded 19 people.
1995 – A Federal judge allowed a lawsuit to proceed claiming US tobacco makers knew nicotine was addictive and manipulated its levels to keep customers hooked
1996 - "One Sweet Day", by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men, was number one for the 12th of 16 weeks. Now that's what we call a smash! "Bigger than the Beatles", by Joe Diffie was beginning a 2-week run at #1 on the Country music chart.
1996 – In Philadelphia, Garry Kasparov defeated the Deep Blue supercomputer in a chess match.
1998 - The US won the first Olympic gold medal ever awarded in women's hockey, defeating Canada in the final, 3-1, in the Nagano Winter Olympics. The American team was led by Captain Cammi Granto and goalie Sarah Tueting.
1998 - US Naval Academy cadet Diane Zamora, 20, was convicted of capital murder
1999 - Top Hits
“Angel of Mine” - Monica
“...Baby One More Time” - Britney Spears
“Believe” - Cher
Heartbreak Hotel - Whitney Houston
“Feat” - Faith Evans
2000 - Windows 2000 Professional Edition was released. Windows 2000 was a “the next generation NT operating system” that Microsoft said took four years and cost over $1 billion to develop.
2001 - It was announced the Kelly Ripa would be Regis Philbin's co-host. The show was renamed to "Live! With Regis and Kelly."
2006 - Washington has asked the Palestinian Authority to return $50 million of American aid. The State Department has said that it is unhappy with the aid going to the Hamas-led government that refuses to recognize Israel. The State Department later said that Mahmoud Abbas' caretaker government had agreed to return the money, which was given for infrastructure projects in the light of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza and parts of the West Bank.
2008 - Little Richard (Richard Penniman got a standing ovation from a crowd of 2,400 at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville without playing a single note. The 75 year old Rock 'n Roll pioneer was seated at the rear of the auditorium during a concert by The Temptations and The Four Tops when he was introduced by The Temp's Otis Williams.
2009 - President Obama signed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) into law in Denver, Colorado. The plan is aimed at saving or creating 3.5 million jobs, boosting consumer spending and rebuilding the economy's infrastructure. Republicans have said that its tax cuts are insufficient, and that the economy will be saddled with debt for years to come.
2014 – “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” premiered on NBC

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SuDoku

The object is to insert the numbers in the boxes to satisfy only one condition: each row, column and 3x3 box must contain the digits 1 through 9 exactly once. What could be simpler?